September 26, 2026 – Saturday of the 25th week of Ordinary Time

Luke 9:43b-45

                                                                                           Homily

We continue our reading of chapter 9 of Luke's Gospel, which we began a few days ago.

Peter's profession of faith in Caesarea was followed by Jesus' first announcement of his Passion. “The Son of Man,” he said, “must suffer greatly, be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, be killed, and on the third day rise again.” About eight days later, Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him up the mountain, where he was transfigured before them. After that, he made the second announcement of the Passion—which is the short text we have just read—and then came the long journey to Jerusalem, during which Luke placed several of Jesus' most radical calls to follow him, in particular the call to the rich young man to give up all his possessions and follow him.

14 September 2026 - Feast of the Glorious Cross

Num 21:4-9; Phil 2:6-11; Jn 3:13-17

                                                                         Homily

Our missals tend to call today's feast the ‘Feast of the Glorious Cross’. This is undoubtedly a very beautiful expression, but the traditional name for this feast, which is a literal translation of the Greek name, is ‘ Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross ’. The word ‘exaltation’ is admirably ambiguous. It can refer to the movement of raising the cross on which a condemned man is standing (in the very act of crucifixion), or it can refer to the movement of raising the cross high, as a sign of triumph, to give glory to God.

13 September 2026 – 24th Sunday ‘A’

Sirach 27:30–28:7; Romans 14:7–9; Matthew 18:21–35

                                                                         Homily

This business of ‘seven times’ and ‘seventy times seven’ is a very old story. It dates back to the time of Cain and Abel. After Abel’s murder, according to the account in Genesis, God banished Cain from Paradise. Cain then said to God: ‘If you drive me out today from this land, I shall be hidden from your face; I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.’ And the Lord replied: ‘Well then! If anyone kills Cain, he shall be avenged sevenfold.’ And, a few generations later, Lamech, Cain’s grandson, took two wives, Ada and Zilla, and said to them, rather defiantly: ‘Ada and Zilla, listen to my voice! Wives of Lamech, lend an ear to my words! Yes, I have killed a man for a wound, a child for a bruise. Yes, Cain will be avenged sevenfold, but Lamech seventy-sevenfold.”

September 6, 2026 – 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year “A”

Ezekiel 33:7–9; Romans 13:8–10; Matthew 18:15–20

                                                               Homily

In the Life of Saint Pachomius (one of the founders of monastic life in Egypt in the 4th century), there is a very interesting passage about “visions” and “miracles.” When some brothers asked him about his visions, Pachomius replied: “Do you want me to tell you about a great vision? — There is no greater vision than that of seeing the invisible God in a visible man—that is, of seeing God in your brother!” And as for miracles and healings, this is what he told them: “If a man is so blind that he does not see the light of God, and if a brother leads him to faith, is that not a healing? If a man is so mute that he cannot speak the truth, or if he is one-handed because of his laziness in fulfilling God’s commandments; in other words, if a sinner is led to repentance with the help of a brother, is that not a great miracle?”

14 septembre 2026 – Fête de la Croix glorieuse

Nb 21, 4-9 ; Ph 2, 6-11 ; Jn 3, 13-17

                                                                           H O M É L I E

           Nos missels tendent à donner à la fête d’aujourd’hui le nom de « Fête de la croix glorieuse ».  C’est sans doute là une très belle expression ; mais le nom traditionnel de cette fête, qui est une traduction littérale du nom grec, est celui de « Fête de l’Exaltation de la Sainte Croix ».  Le mot « exaltation » est admirablement ambigu.  Il peut désigner le mouvement consistant à élever la croix sur laquelle se trouve un condamné (dans l’acte même de la crucifixion), ou bien le mouvement consistant à élever la croix bien haut, en signe de triomphe, et pour lui rendre gloire.

6 septembre 2026 – 23^ème dimanche ordinaire « A »

Ez 33, 7-9 ; Rm 13, 8-10 ; Mt 18, 15-20

                                                                         Homélie

          Dans la Vie de saint Pachôme (l’un des fondateurs de la vie monastique en Égypte au 4^ème siècle), on trouve un texte très intéressant sur les "visions" et les "miracles".  À des frères qui l'interrogeaient sur ses visions, Pachôme répondit:  "Voulez-vous que je vous parle d'une grande vision? -- Il n'y a pas de plus grande vision que celle de voir le Dieu invisible dans un homme visible – c’est-à-dire, de voir Dieu dans votre frère!"  Et quant aux miracles et guérisons, voici ce qu'il leur dit: "Si un homme est si aveugle qu'il ne voit pas la lumière de Dieu, et si un frère l'amène à la foi, n'est-ce pas là une guérison?  Si un homme est muet au point de ne pas pouvoir dire la vérité, ou s'il est manchot à cause de sa paresse dans l'accomplissement des commandements de Dieu;  en d'autres mots, si un pécheur est amené à la repentance par l'aide d'un frère, n'est-ce pas là un grand miracle?"